The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly presented businesses across all sectors significant challenges. Now — more than two years into the global pandemic — as companies continue to be creative in how they grow and generate profits, proving cybersecurity preparedness is becoming a key component of how to make a modern-day business thrive.
When a business works with third-party vendors, it can sometimes cause an administrative headache of making sure everyone complies with the company’s given cybersecurity protocols.
Hen Amartely writes in CPO Magazine about current solutions that have been devised to automate third-party security risk evaluations before a company decides to bring them into the fold. This more efficient process benefits both businesses and their vendors.
“Sales cycles can either make or break business growth; the longer the sale cycle, the less likely a deal will close, with dire consequences on pipeline and revenue,” Amartely writes. “When sales cycles are dragged out as a direct result of complicated cybersecurity risk assessments, business can be lost. That is why sales cycles need to be kept as short and efficient as possible. The best way to do this is to have an efficient cybersecurity assessment process in place.”
Amartely explains that when being vetted through a company’s cybersecurity assessments, vendors typically are put through a long, drawn out process that gives them less time to turn a profit and maximize a sales cycle. The security team for a vendor might have to answer repetitive, long questionnaires that come with a string of follow-up emails. She adds that fractures in morale might exist between the sales team and cybersecurity professionals within a vendor company.
A way to solve these problems can come in the form of third-party security management platforms that automate these processes, completing cybersecurity screenings more efficiently.
“For example, by providing vendors with the ability to sign up to a platform, they can gain full visibility into their own security profile, allowing them to monitor for any security gaps and have complete control over their cybersecurity even prior to being assessed by potential customers,” Amartely adds.
Additionally, these platforms can give vendors the chance to craft a comprehensive “security overview” that can be shared with clients right at the start of a sales cycle. By handing over this profile at the start of a business relationship with a new client, it can build trust as well as save time.
In this uncertain environment brought about by the pandemic, communicating to potential clients and collaborators that your business’s cybersecurity practices are foolproof is needed not just to scale up and thrive, but to ensure your precious data remains protected.